Gardening and Sickness

 We have been doing some gardening lately. My Balloon Flower Plant bloomed, then promptly died. 

Three Weeks ago: We have been filling in our new slightly larger flowerbeds that was created when he had the stone border put in. Here are some things that we planted.

 We have several types of Lavender. I forget which is which. One is French, one is Spanish and I don't remember the rest.

This is called a Fernleaf Lavender, a variety I had not seen previously. I have a passion for Lavender so I collect every variety I can. We planted all 5 lavender plants along the walkway to the front door. That way when they attain full size they will hang over the sidewalk a little. People will brush up against it and admire how lovely it smells.

We have a Wave Petunia, which is supposed to be very heat tolerant. So far it seems to be thriving in the spring heat.

I thought this Dianthis looked neat.

 I call this the Fuchsia dot plant because I don't have the foggiest idea what it is really called. 

 This is a Penta Flower.

This is our rose hedge under our front window. I love English styles gardens, and roses under the window are an English tradition. I love the English style because of its relaxed feeling. Not stuffy French manicured style. I am not good at sticking to a plan. Once I get to the flower shop, I throw that out the window.

On the other hand, I like Japanese style gardens. It seems like a contradiction and it is. I have never tried to create a Japanese garden in my yard.

Back to my front Garden. We bought 5 rosebushes. The 3 in the middle are actually rose "carpets", a low growing variety. The 2 on the ends are a more traditions Hybrid Tea Rose bush. However day by day, the one closest to the camera is dying. The leaves are turning yellow, the flowers are wilty and don't bloom. We turn on the soaker hoses daily. We put special soil in the hole that the nursery recommended but I fear that is not enough. This rose bush was a red and white striped flower. All the other bushes are red or white flowers.

This is called a Torch Plant. It has a most intriguing bloom.

White Salvia (Sage) is on the left side of the garden. We thought it would look good with the white stonework.

No Texas garden would be complete without Zinnias. Ours have done something strange though. The pink is leaching out, so now it looks like pink and white striped flower. It is still pretty though so I am happy. I suspect that it has something to do with the acidity or lack of acidity. 

We also have Verbena. 

The Red Verbena is NOT next to the pink Zinnias.

Lastly, why have I not posted lately? 1- This garden was a lot of work and took time. 2- The school year is winding down and very busy. In Texas we had TAKS testing to drive us crazy. 3- I have been sick... twice...kind of... I had a really high fever 2 weeks ago. I was out sick from work for several days. I didn't go to the dr. because I hate them. They torture with sticks down throat. I got better w/o dr.
Then this past Tuesday, I got a rash on my arms. I thought it was an allergic reaction to perfume. (Middle school kids discover it this time a year and bathe in it!)  Wednesday the rash spread. Thursday ALL my joints began to ache... agony! It hurt to write. That is not good when you are a teacher!
I went to the dr. They tested my blood for everything. Friday, joints still hurt, rash going away. Dr. says it is a reactionary virus. Reaction to being sick 2-3 weeks ago. I told her I had been sick 2 weeks ago. She gave me medication. Starting to feel well enough to type now. I do not look forward to getting old and arthritic!